The Hindu : Basha, 8 others get life term

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Jul 30, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Tamil Nadu

Basha, 8 others get life term

By V.S. Palaniappan

Coimbatore July 29. S. Murugan, judge, fast track court - III, today sentenced nine Al-Umma men to life imprisonment in the September 5, 1991 case of murder of a Hindu Munnani speaker, Shivakumar alias Veerashiva, here. According to the prosecution, the Hindu Munnani activist, hailing from Idayar Street here, was murdered by a gang at the Sukrawarpet - Mill Road junction. The crime was seen as a reaction to speeches he made at a public meeting held a few days earlier.

The prosecution said the meeting took place soon after the reported pasting of posters by Al-Umma, announcing a couple of Hindu activists in its hit list on August 19, 1991. While the police arrested nine persons including the Al-Umma founder-leader, S.A. Basha, the spokesperson of the outfit, Mujibur Rehman, is still at large.

The murder was a ``major setback'' to the peace in the textile city, as it ``sowed the seeds for communal frenzy'', the prosecution contended. It cited 29 witnesses and 23 material objects.

The police had arrested Zakir Hussain, Shahul Hameed, Babu alias Oom Babu, Sabur Rehman, Haroon Basha, Bilal Hajiar, Mohammed Subair, S.A. Basha and Tajudeen, and registered cases against them under Sections IPC 148 (unlawful assembly with deadly weapons), 302 (murder) and 120 B (conspiracy). A case under Section 332 IPC (voluntarily causing hurt to any public servant) was registered against Zakir Hussain for attempting to assault a traffic constable, who was the complainant in the case.

The judge observed: ``The court is of the opinion that the persons accused of the charges are guilty''. When he asked them whether they had any thing to say on the sentence, all the nine accused maintained that they were innocent and that it was a ``fabricated'' case in which they were ``falsely'' and ``purposely'' implicated. Most of them pleaded for a minimum sentence and for setting off the trial period against the conviction. S.A. Basha told the court that just because he was an important person in the community, he had been included in the case. Zakir Hussain said they were aware ``it was a verdict given at the compulsion of the Government''. Tajudeen said if the court decided that he was guilty even in the absence of incriminating evidence to prove his involvement, it would be against the principles of natural justice. The judge acquitted the fifth accused, Haroon Basha, of the charges of unlawful assembly with deadly weapons and murder.

However, he found him guilty of being part of the conspiracy. Observing that showing mercy to the accused in such a murder case would amount to misuse of mercy, he awarded life sentence to all the nine accused, on the charge of conspiracy, besides imposing a fine of Rs 10,000. In default, they would have to undergo a one-year rigorous imprisonment.

He awarded one more life sentence to the first four accused on charges of murder, besides a fine of Rs 25,000. If they failed to pay the fine, they would have to undergo one more year of RI.

Mr. Murugan handed one more year of RI to the first four accused for unlawful assembly with deadly weapons and one-year RI to Zakir Hussain for causing hurt to a public servant. The judge, however, said the first four accused would undergo the sentences concurrently.

Gnanabharathy, defence counsel, said the accused would go in appeal.

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